THE BLACK SWAN OF THE ROMANIAN TOURISM

Abstract

The imposing and magnificent natural Romanian sight forces me to ask myself the question: "What is the problem of Romanian tourism?", question which has as support the contribution of tourism services to GDP, the share of people employed in tourism, the number of enterprises/businesses in tourism, mobile/property capital owned by the tourist sector, etc. The analysis of these indicators highlight the contribution of tourism services in Romania's economic and social growth. The two obvious aspects of tourism have a strong impact on people, communities and the environment. Impact on a region can be social, political, economic and cultural. The social impact of tourism refers to the direct effects on tourists and people/communities in destination areas, and the impact on the level of education, culture and civilization, on the use of leisure time, the links between communities/nations, and cultural heritage in tourist areas. Effects identified may impact both positively and negatively in the regions analyzed. The positive social impact in the communities relate to the creation of jobs (the new employment opportunities and professionalization of local labor, especially for disadvantaged groups, such as youth or women), infrastructure development, increasing local budget revenue, diversification of forms of crafts and facilitating social integration through intercultural exchanges between tourists and the host population. Regarding the negative social impact, this refers to the gradual destruction of traditional livelihoods, disrupting the local structures of power and the adoption of harmful behaviors (especially among children and young people). It results that tourism development leads to improved quality of life when there are taken into account the specific conditions and it is carried out in a sustainable manner.